Summer Sessions: House

To close out the summer, we have two bumper house playlists, full of instant classics and soulful melodies. The house session comes in two flavours: the peak playlist deals in shiny, fist-pumping bangers, while the deep playlist is dustier, more analog, packed with after-hours sounds from some of the scene's top producers. The deep playlist is a more typical White Noise list, but we aim to please, and there are countless scorchers on each list to keep the sun shining out of your speakers well into the colder months.

Make sure to check out all of our summer playlist series, and to follow White Noise on Facebook and Twitter!

Summer Sessions:

Classic House

Hip Hop
Chill

Bass
Funk and Soul

Peak House Playlist

Tracklist:

Krystal Klear - From The Start

First Choice - Love Thang (Genius of Time Re-edit)

DJ T. - City Life (Maceo Plex Remix)

Scuba - Everywhere

Sophie - Nothing More To Say (Dub)

C.R.S.T - Monster Munch

FCL - Let's Go

Capracara - Ronin

Bicep - Vison of Love

Classixx - Into the Valley (Julio Bashmore Remix)

NY Stomp - The NY House Trak

Paul Woolford - Untitled

Medlar - Can't Stop

Floorplan - Never Grow Old

Kyodai - Breaking

Lone - Airglow Fires

Simian Mobile Disco & Bicep - Sacrifice

Todd Terje - Strandbar (Disko Version)

Teengirl Fantasy - Cheaters (John Talabot's Classic Vocal Refix)

Crazy P - Heartbreaker

Deep House Playlist

Tracklist:

Floating Points - Love Me Like This (Nonsense Dub)

HNNY - For The Very First Time (Dirtytwo's Midas Touch Remix)

Nicholas - Things Of The Past (NY Club Mix)

Anthony Naples - Mad Disrespect

The Phantom - Vogue Dub

Chesus - Special

Damiano von Erckert & Funkycan - Symphonie of a Brother

Wbeeza - Billy Green Is Ded

KMFH - Down!

Session Victim - Good Intentions

October - String Theory

Andres - Jack City

Motor City Drum Ensemble - Raw Cuts #6

Last Magpie - (Who Knows) Where Love Goes

Nitetime - Teddy's Jam

Trevor Deep Jr - Keep On!

Omar S - The Shit Baby

Wil Maddams - Stand In For Love

Mosca - The Way We Were

Space Dimension Controller - The Love Quadrant

Tito Wun - The Way U Do It

Theo Parrish - Solitary Flight

Summer Mixes

Now that we're finally getting some real sun, there's no time like the present to share a couple of fresh  mixes featuring a load of the tracks that have been on repeat at White Noise HQ.

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First up is the Sun & Soul mix: 80 minutes of joyous disco and house cuts, shot through with soulful samples. One for the sunshine.

Tracklist:

Romare - Hey Now (When I Give You All My Lovin')
Tito Wun - The Way U Do it

Genius of Time - Love Thang

Laszlo Dancehall - Gave Up

Damiano von Erckert - The Dude Loop

Wbeeza - Billy Green Is Ded

Anthony Naples - Faceless

Chesus - Special

Johnick - C'mon Give It Up

Kyodai - Breaking

Lucretio - Want

Andrés - New For U

Floorplan - We Magnify His Name

Damiano von Erckert - Housem

Jacques Renault - Searching For Some Real Love

John Swing - Always At Night

Floorplan - Untitled

Murat Tepeli - Forever (Prosumer's Hold Me Touch Me Remix)

Murat Tepeli - Workinstrugglin

MCDE - Raw Cuts 6

Nina Simone - See Line Woman (Kerri Chandler & Jerome Sydenham Remix)

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Next we have the Short n Sweet mix, a quick party mix that's only 30 minutes but jam-packed with new and forthcoming tracks.

Tracklist:

Omar S - Skynet 2 B
Head High - Burning (Keep Calm Mix)

Wildchild - Renegade Master (Applebottom Power Remix)
Huxley - Lost Love
Danny J Lewis - Spend The Night (H Man Mix)
DJ Haus - Cold As Ice
Innershades - That Girl
Tweet feat. Missy Elliot - Oops (Palace Raw Version)
Kerri Chandler - Rain
Morgan Geist - 24K

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Remember you can click on the 'Mixes' button at the top of screen to access all of our mixes at any time.

April Roundup 2013 & Hiatus

Another month of excellent music is over. White Noise collects our favourite April releases (and a couple that slipped through the nets last month) in a monthly roundup.

In other news, my university finals are coming up and as a result White Noise will be taking a hiatus until the end of May. Expect a return to usual reviews in June, including some new exciting features and our second round of big summer playlists. For now, the cream of April's crop, and you can keep up to date on the latest music through the White Noise Facebook page.

Enjoy!

Tracklist:

Omar S - The Shit Baby [LP Review]

Murat Tepeli - Forever (Prosumer's Hold Me Touch Me Mix)

Divvorce - E3 [EP Review]

Arkist - 23 Summers [EP Review]

Joy O - Donell

Citizen - So Submissive

Bicep - Rise [EP Review]

Adalberto - In Your Face

Lorca - Have I Told You [EP Review]

Koreless - Sun

L-Vis 1990 - Ballad 4D [EP Review]

Jon Hopkins - Open Eye Signal

Pev - Livity [EP Review]

Kode9 - Xingfu Lu

Demdike Stare - Primitive Equations

DjRum - Honey [LP Review]

Not satisfied? Check out our Roundup archives:

March 2013

February 2013

January 2013

November 2012

October 2012

September 2012

August 2012

June / July 2012

May 2012

April 2012

March 2012

February 2012

January 2012

Best of 2011 Playlist

Omar S – Thank You For Letting Me Be Myself

Label: FXHE

‘It can be done, but only I can do it’ asserted the brash title of Omar S’ last album. While the message showed a self-conscious arrogance more at home in hip hop than house music, there’s no denying that Omar S and his FXHE label have something special going on. Alex Smith, who records as Omar S, seems to have settled down since then, as his new album’s statement of tongue-in-cheek gratitude is matched by music of rare confidence and flexibility. His no-nonsense approach to dance music is quickly becoming the stuff of legend as Smith fuses Detroit’s house and techno lineages into superb analog jams, releasing them at an astonishingly prolific rate. After spending a bit of time with his latest, you’ll likely come out thinking that only he can do it, and you might just want to give yourself a pat on the back for letting him be himself, too.

Unlike his motor city cohorts, Smith has long steered clear of the jazzier and more experimental fringes of house music, always prizing the holy groove above all else. While his confidence may be well established, Omar S has never sounded as versatile as he does on this LP; indeed few will be expecting the sound of the opening track. After a typically humorous introductory skit, I Just Want gallops into view with a tough kick and urgent synthwork that sounds as Berlin as it does Detroit, the heaving 4/4 fused to submerged vocals and razor-sharp hi hats. Nor is this the only point where Smith contemplates darkness: later the abstract assault of Hellter Shelter drenches a locked groove in Actress-like layers of distortion, while percussive curio Tardigrade’s stumbles along, adorned only by a shifting field of drum patterns.

Full Album Stream (Youtube Playlist)

Despite these nocturnal experiments, fans of Smith’s low-slung funk will not go away empty handed. Third cut Air Of The Day is classic Omar, an airy melody breathing life into crystalline beat patterns and filtered synth notes. Smith’s talent for injecting an edge of sleaze into classic house structures is storied, and the rude stabs that take over the track’s final minutes will get even the most frigid dancefloors a little sweaty. It’s immediately followed by the warm sounds of Be Yoself, a more laid-back affair where a descending bassline plays host to echoing claps and an ever-shifting ambient hum. These are all gems in their own way, but perhaps the album’s funkiest moment comes later in the form of the irresistible Amalthea, as a shimmery melodic loop draws ever nearer over a satisfying bass bounce and sharp claps.

Some of the album’s smoother moments are just as impressive. After the success of last year’s S.E.X and Tonite, L’Renee lends her gorgeous vocals to Rewind, which would sound a shoe-in for 90s RnB if it weren’t for the impressive tweaks that keep the production interesting across the seven minute runtime. Smith gets lusher still on beautiful closer Its Money In The D, where a ricocheting beat pattern lays the ground for a surprisingly delicate array of jazzy chords.

It’s a great journey, but there will surely be a few asking where they can find this album’s standout, where’s its Here’s Your Trance Now Dance? Two highlights emerge, not least the stunning (almost) title track, Thank U 4 Letting Me Be Myself. Here Smith offers an intoxicating blend of stuttering bass notes, crisp percussion and shimmering synthwork that’s nothing if not airy and upbeat. The other standout is undoubtedly the superb The Shit Baby, where a darker groove is complimented by scene-stealing piano improvisations courtesy of D. Taylor.

While previous Omar S LPs have felt more like compilations than albums, and Smith never ventures anywhere near an overriding concept, many of these tracks are enhanced by their neighbours, and the album proves a notably coherent listen. As such, some may feel that the 80 minute runtime, emphasised by Smith’s lack of real structural development with the tracks, is a tad excessive. Indeed, the album begins to droop as its second half offers fewer highlights, but it never truly falters. There are a lot of great tracks here, some merely good, but few of these tunes will disappoint.

It’s hard to pin down exactly what makes Omar S’ music so special. Maybe it’s those big, irresistible drums. Maybe its his impressive distillation of Detroit’s musical history, which he accomplishes without ever losing track of his distinctive voice. It seems most likely, though, that it’s his no-nonsense approach to his music. Omar S makes songs for people to dance to, they are pure simplicity itself. In what is perhaps his best album to date, he shows all the pretenders the lofty heights that can be scaled accompanied by only beats, bass and synths.

9/10

Guest Mixes

We've got not two but three guest mixes for you today here at White Noise, so get your listening hats on.

First up is a mix courtesy of our ever-reliable resident, G More. His excellent guest mix spans 20 years of house and garage.

Bump, Flex & Shwang

 

Tracklist:

Meli'sa Morgan - Still In Love With You (Meli'sa's In The House)

NY Stomp - Can You Feel It?

Storm Queen - Look Right Through (MK Don't Talk To Me Vocal Mix)

R.B.M. - The Boy (Ralph's Hard House Mix)

Moné - We Can Make It (The Groove Mix) 

NY Stomp - The NY House Trak

R.B.M. - The Boy (Boy "More" Beats) 

Joy Orbison - Ellipsis

Somore - I Refuse (What You Want) (Industry Standard Mix) 

Terrence Dixon - Return Of The Speaker People (Kausto's Sudden Aphasia Mix) 

Brawther - Spaceman Funk (Deep Club Mix)

If you're done with that and desperate for more, we have a couple of mixes courtesy of _moth on Mixcloud. Both tracklists are excellent, there's a mix of dusty, sunny house and another darker mix for the night hours.

Summertime Mix

Tracklist:

Fatima feat. Floating Points – Cinnamon

Motor City Drum Ensemble – L.O.V.E

Andrés – Drama Around The Corner

Session Victim – Good Intentions

Pépé Bradock – Path Of Most Resistance

Omar S feat. L’Renée – SEX (CGP Remix)

October – String Theory

Claptone – Cream

Anthony Naples – Mad Disrespect

Nitetime – Teddy’s Jam

Huxley – Box Clever

West Norwood Cassette Library – Coming On Strong

Moodymann – Why Do U Feel

Night Time Mix

Tracklist

DJ Shadow – Transmission 2

John Talabot – So Will Be Now

Burial – NYC

Bo Saris – She’s On Fire (Maya Jane Coles Remix)

Dusky – Lost Highway

Maya Jane Coles – What They Say

Kahn – Like We Used To

Akkord – Back & Forth

Burial – Loner

Artifact – Deserted

Dusky – No More

Deadboy – Heartbreaker

DjRum – Turiya

Ramadanman – Don’t Change For Me

The xx – Crystallised (Dark Sky Remix)

The Drop – Looking To The Sky (DjRum Remix)

May Roundup

It’s that time of the month again, here are some of my favourite releases from May, in one handy playlist. This month I've included a couple I missed from the end of last month and a couple that come out at the beginning of June. Enjoy!

Tracklist:

Omar-S feat. L’Renee – SEX (Constant Gardens Posse Remix)

Leon Vynehall – Picture Frame (Clip)

West Norwood Cassette Library – Coming On Strong (Clip)

Jimmy Edgar – U Need Love

Boddika & Joy O – Dun Dun

Girl Unit – Ensemble (Club Mix)

Head High – Rave (Dirt Mix)

Guy Andrews – The Wait

XI – Joy / Fear

Swindle –If I Was A Super Hero

Hackman – Forgotten Notes (free download here)

Bo Saris – She’s On Fire (Maya Jane Coles Remix)

Fantastic Mr Fox – Yesterdays Fall feat Alby Daniels

Bondax – Wet Summer (free download here)

Friendzone – Chuch

How To Dress Well – Ocean Floor for Everything (free download here)

Here are a couple of top quality releases from earlier this year well worth checking out:

Storm Queen – Look Right Through (MK Don’t Talk To Me Dub)

Body Double – My Life / Be Strong

Enjoy!

Mix: I'll See You After The Function

A very special surprise for you all today, a massive mix from our resident DJ G More, and it really couldn't be better. The mix focuses mainly on the housey side of things and it includes more White Noise favourites than you can  count, so sit back (or get on up) and enjoy!

 

Tracklist:

Metro - Brownstone Express 

Jimmy Edgar - This One's For The Children 

Christophe - The Scene 

Late Nite Tuff Guy - A Deal With God 

Krystal Klear - From The Start 

Storm Queen - It Goes On (Dub) 

Omar - Feeling You (Henrik Schwarz Remix) 

Kato - Booty Dance (Nicholas Raw Interpretation) 

Brawther - Do It Yourself (Alternative Mix) 

NY Stomp - The NY House Trak 

Simpson - Till You Were Dead 

Dominic Martin - Homage New Jersey 

Si'Ke DJs - Safe House 

FCL - More Than Seven 

Huxley - Let It Go 

Maurice Donovan - Call My Name 

Omar S Presents Aaron "Fit" Siegel feat. L'Renee - Tonite (Detroit Mix) 

Late Nite Tuff Guy - I Get Deeper 

Christophe - The Force (Julio Bashmore Piano Mix) 

Behling - Last Chance 

Krystal Klear - We're Wrong 

Equation - I'll Say A Prayer 4 U 

Johnny Osbourne - We Need Love

Dance and Electronic Roundup September – The Past

I’ve been away and moving to Paris so I’ve been neglecting the blog recently, but there have been all sorts of fantastic tunes coming out over summer and I’ve put together my highlights for all you guys here in a handy little playlist. It’s so big that I thought it’d be better in two parts; these are the best tunes I've been hearing from earlier in the year.

Download the whole playlist in mp3 format here.



Julio Bashmore – Battle For Middle You

Bashmore seems to be always on-point, whether in his remixes, co-productions or solo work, and his Everybody Needs A Theme Tune EP earlier this year proved he’s a force to be reckoned with. This is the standout of the EP, with a slow-build beat and wobbling synth giving way to a shady, bassy groove. I challenge anyone not to love it.

Hackman – Close

Now we’re going back in time somewhat to some tracks I never got a chance to mention on here. First up is undoubtedly a frontrunner in my favourite tracks of the year, Hackman’s tropical take on dubstep gives way to a deep groove and a genuinely heart-wrenching vocal sample. A track that is well-crafted and guaranteed to get people dancing, all while having a sincere emotional effect on the listener is a rare and wonderful thing.

Blawan – Getting Me Down

I know this is a very late nod to such a wonderful track, and Blawan’s new release should really be the focus of attention, but I couldn’t let the year pass without sharing this with whoever hasn’t yet heard it. A simple and rich beat is fused with some of the straight-up best vocal sampling I’ve ever heard, chopped and screwed whilst holding onto one of the best hooks of the year. You’ll find yourself attempting to sing this long after it’s over.

Sully – 2 Hearts

Although not released as a single, the second cut from Sully’s new Carrier LP easily deserves a 12” to itself. Sully continues where he left off on his last single The Loot, mining the darkest corners of 2-step with creeping synths, garage sounds and a frightened sampled scream that will stay in your head long after the track is over.

Koreless – MTI

Heading back to lighter pastures with one of my favourite discoveries of the summer, Glasgow’s young bass master Koreless. The subtlety and attention to his details in his tracks makes almost every one a winner for me, and it was hard to choose this B-side over the great single 4D that the 12” comes with, but this is the winner for me. A hiss-laden ambient wash introduces the track over a beautiful sample and ubiquitous bassy bleeps. Koreless shows himself a master of the micro-edit in how the vocal sample is laced through the track, bringing his trademark smoothness to the potentially rough business of cutting up vocals so fine.

Juk Juk – Winter Turn Spring

This newcomer on Four Tet’s Text label came out of nowhere to produce one of the best tracks this August. Backmasked vocals cast a ghostly shadow over the clean and punchy beat, the softness of which is later undermined by a dark dubby snarl. All the layers comes together to create a track that is subtly and beautifully edited as well as sounding genuinely unique.

Omar S – Solely Supported

The first track from Omar S’ great recent LP, this is also one of the best. Throwback sounds are put back together in new ways, creating a simple but great track that’ll carve a sinuous groove to your ears.

Prison Garde – L’Automne

Canada is just on fire at the moment. Prison Garde gave away a free LP, Systeme Hermes, that I didn’t have time to review over the summer, but for anyone who hasn’t heard it this track should persuade you. His focus on simple and clean retro synths, married to sliding percussion and a keen sense of timing and restraint works impressively on this track, presumably instincts born from so many years at the front of Canada’s club scene.

Willy Joy – A Woman Like Me (Dillon Francis Remix)

A classic slice of the odd subgenre moombahton that’s been emerging for some time, this is a straight-up slice of dancefloor fodder, combining a crazy-forceful beat with a clean vocal sample and a really nice groove.

Lukid – Dragon Stout

(This track isn't on youtube, but the mp3 is included on the playlist downloadable above)

This is definitely where things get a little strange. Lukid’s woozy output is enough to make anyone outside the constrains of sobriety a little seasick at the least, and on his most recent Spitting Bile EP he continues to make some of the weirdest dance music out there with flare. Discordant digital synths crunch together into a stuttering beat accompanied by a rich soundfield of really bizarre sounds. This track may not be for everyone, but I’m loving it and you definitely can’t say there’s anything else out there like this.

Jam City – Barely A Trak

Although no recent Night Slugs activity means I don’t have anything new to share (I’m sure we’re all excited about L-Vis 1990s debut though, right), but I want to give a nod to Jam City’s bizarre and wonderful construction from the Waterworx EP. As the title states, there’s so little here that this is hardly a song, but its sparse components somehow manage to pull it off. The vocal line sounds suitably strange in a soundfield of loping beats and rising synthy oddness, before traffic and pedestrian noise engulfs the whole lot briefly. Has to be heard to be believed.

Jason Fine - Jack Yo Bodda (Feat AOS)

This track almost sounds like it came out ten years ago, but it’s yet further proof that our dance ancestors got it so right. A simple 4/4 underlies a great vocal sample and brilliantly woozy synthlines, creating a simple but punchy dance tune that could get anyone moving.

4UCKY – 1984 (I Want More)

I don’t really know anything about this guy, but I’ve definitely had this song on a lot over the summer. As the title indicates, it’s pure 80s throwback, with a driving beat and cheap bell sounds propelling sleazy vocals across the track. Then it all breaks down into a crunchy untreated synthline and, well, I just can’t really get enough.

Synkro & Indigo – Guidance

If that last track was moving away from dance genres, this track almost goes further. Drum and Bass is really not my thing, but Exit Records really put out a winner on this 12”. The cinematic and relaxed groove of liquid DnB can do things the straighter tracks can't achieve. Half-rooted in atmospheric ambient, a sharp beat skitters across the surface of this track and creates a dreamy, epic sound that goes down a treat. If you like this, the B-side Reflections is equally great.

Tycho – Hours

Last call here goes to my favourite ambient beatsmith on the scene, Tycho, who has a very exciting new album due out soon. Past is Prologue was the very definition of a grower, and the first track from his new album Dive sounds like exactly what the doctor ordered; more of the same unique sound, but a little pacier, a little more refined. Let it take you away.